Eternal Innocence
by Raftina Rune
Summary: After coming across a Laguz child during a raid against Laguz Slavery, the bird tribes eventually uncover a hidden secret of their world. May turn humorous, or stay mainly serious.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I decided to write another Fire Emblem Story for the first time in years. I know this chapter is short, but this is a test to see if anyone would be interested in seeing more. Reviews will be the deciding factor on if I continue to update this or not. That said, I don't own Fire Emblem. However, any characters that do not show in Fire Emblem are mine, like Fie. Enjoy! The divider will be used for Author Notes, but also for various time and place changes sometimes.

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After the Mad King's War, the Hawk King Tibarn decided that he would indeed watch more over the humans – at least when it came to Begnion. The rumors of Laguz slavery were more than just that, and even though the Apostle was doing what she could to dissolve all such treacheries there were plenty more going on, Tibarn knew full and well that not even Sanaki could flush all of them out. Thus, he had sent his own to take care of a group that had been found trafficking Laguz. Namely, he sent Ulki and Janaff to take them out. His Ears and Eyes would be more than enough with a small group of warriors to help.

"So, Ulki, how long do you think they're going to be standing around like that?" Janaff asked with a sigh. It already had turned dark hours ago, and yet it seemed as though this group was much more active than others that they had seen in the past.

"I don't believe that they will any time soon. They have a lot of beorc to change out the guards and those working on transport," came the answer of Janaff's comrade. "I believe that we can move on whenever, the situation isn't going to change more in our favor."

That caused Janaff to hit his left palm with his fist. "It's settled. Let's do it now so we can get this taken care of before dawn."

With that, the two hawks motioned to their followers and transformed before flying out of the cover of the surrounding trees. Of course, that's when a beorc scout finally realized that they were even there to start with, and caused the man to shout a warning to the rest.

That was when the battle began. Workers that couldn't fight ran off, dropping whatever they were doing, while the brigades tried to futilely hit the offending hawks. In a way, the battle was over before it had even begun; the beorc were no match for the agile birds. Though, they obviously had prepared for any beorc enemies, so they weren't all that stupid.

Once the last of the traffickers had either fled or met their demise, the two hawks entered the building to see what Laguz they could find – and to their relief, it wouldn't take long at all. Cats, tigers, and a few of the bird tribe members were all bound in either chains or caged, some were drugged and didn't rouse at first from their sedated state. Janaff looked around the room, feeling sorrow and anger at the treatment of their kind by ignorant beorc. There was also relief, however, that all of the Laguz they found were alive and overall unharmed.

That was when he noticed something in the corner. It was an odd sight indeed, and as the King's Eyes, he certainly saw a lot! A little boy was the corner, with a chain shackled to his left ankle. However, what took him off guard was that the boy was notably of a bird clan, and someone had apparently dyed his wings. The boy's feathers were colored a deep red, orange, and gold, and his hair was dyed orange and red as well, with green eyes that reminded him of the Heron Royal family. Though…how would that be possible? Could this boy even a heron?

"W-who are you?" the boy asked, frightened. This reminded Janaff that he hadn't spoken yet.

He did his best to grin and let the boy see that he wasn't here to cause any harm to him, or the others. "I am Janaff of the Hawk Tribe. We came to rescue all the Laguz who were captured. Are you okay?"

"Um, yes," the youth replied. "My name is Fie."

It was at this time that Ulki stopped beside Janaff to see who he was talking to. "We're going to start back towards the camp now. We have everyone rounded up to get out of here," he said, seeing Fie, but not making any comments upon his odd coloring. "Can you fly, little one?"

"O-only for a short distance," was the boy's reply as Ulki used a key to unlock the chain bounding the young one's foot.

"That's fine. One of us can carry you. Where do you live?"

Fie noticeably changed, and lowered his eyes to the ground, shaking his head slowly. The gesture was all they needed. He didn't seem to have a home to go to. "I'm sorry…" was all he could say.

"Don't worry. We will bring you to the Hawk King and we'll find out where you can go after that. Now, let's go," Janaff stated, ruffling Fie's head in a brotherly fashion. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know what little Fie had been through.

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It took a couple of days to get back home to Phoenicis, and not much else had been found out about their new friend. The boy wouldn't answer any of their questions concerning where he had come from. This worried the two hawks, but nonetheless, a hatchling couldn't be left alone. So, once they arrived, they immediately brought him to see Tibarn. However, the Hawk King was currently out hunting a meal, so they could only wait for his return.

Well, they could have gone to find him easily enough, but they had been flying all this morning and the sun was getting lower in the sky. It was dim enough that the torches for the rooms had already been lit, and Janaff had taken to leaning against the stone wall of the throne room and wait with his eyes closed.

It wasn't too long after their arrival, that Ulki heard an interesting change in one of the torches' flames. Knowing precisely the direction of the sound, he tilted his head to see Fie standing next to the torch. The hatchling was watching the small fire in utter delight, keeping very focused on the gracefully dancing flames, as if the torch was doing its best to entertain him. Being careful to not move abruptly, Ulki placed his hand on Janaff's shoulder. "Janaff, look at this," he stated.

Janaff reluctantly opened one eye, then once focused on what he believed Ulki to be talking about, both eyes opened. "I've never seen such a thing before… I mean the other torches aren't that far apart for it to be wind affecting it alone so…" he whispered, then letting the rest of his sentence trail off. There was definitely something that they didn't know about this hatchling. Before any more could be said however, Tibarn entered through the large window…


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you for the good responses! I know I'll probably be rusty in writing, I haven't done too much of it lately. But to those of you that made guesses, you'll soon see if you were right. The disclaimer is on the first chapter, I don't think I need to repeat that. So, after you read this, please review. I'm open to ideas if you have any as well, and I do answer PMs. So, enjoy.

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The presence of the king could be felt by most nearby and the three in the room were no exception. Janaff and Ulki stood up straight in respect to their king, and Fie looked from the inviting torch to Tibarn. Tibarn looked from his two aides to the newcomer, stopping while his gaze went by the youngest. "Who have you brought here?" he asked, addressing the aides.

"This is Fie. He was among the rest of the captured Laguz, and had his wings and hair dyed by the beorc. They probably thought he would look different enough to get more coin," answered Janaff. Although curious, the two felt that the boy was traumatized enough by what the beorc did to him to ask him about it.

Tibarn's eyebrows furrowed. "I see."

Laughter rang throughout the room, causing the three adults to look at Fie. The child was the one laughing. "You two thought that they dyed my feathers? I assure you that my coloring is very much natural," he grinned, amused.

"Natural? But…no one of the Bird Tribe has that sort of coloring," Ulki remarked, as with Tibarn in thought and Janaff's jaw dropped, he was the only one that could say anything in a timely fashion.

"But I do," Fie said, letting his little wingspan show off his feathers.

"Then, I will ask you this. What tribe are you from?" Tibarn inquired.

"I…I…"

"Well?" Tibarn looked expectantly at Fie, waiting for the answer.

"S-since you're the Hawk King, I guess it's okay to tell you... You see, my people are of another bird tribe. I am of the Phoenix Tribe," was the child's answer.

Janaff raised an eyebrow. "Fee…nix? Where have your people been?"

"In hiding, since…umm…forever… I think," came the answer. He paused before speaking again. "Ever since the Goddess created races, our people were entrusted with the Eternal flame. It was the light the Goddess worked by to create Tellius. Or…that is what my father told me."

"Interesting. Either that is the truth, or you have quite an imagination," Tibarn said, staring at the boy's face. After a moment, he nodded. "I will take you for your word for now. Though I would like to know how it is that you were found."

Fie shook his head. "I don't really know. I was asleep in my home, and the next thing I knew, I was falling. I think…I heard someone calling for me, but I was too busy slowing my fall. I ended up in the forest where those beorc found me a couple of days ago," he responded.

"Then, if you don't mind telling us where your home is at, we wouldn't mind taking you back," Ulki stated, getting a nod from Janaff to show he also felt that way.

"We can't let a little hatching travel by himself. Especially if you can't fly that well yet! Say, how old are you anyways? Around fifty? Sixty?

"I'm one hundred," Fie answered, causing Janaff to sigh. Didn't this always happen to him? For being the Eyes of the King, a judge of age he was not. He had gotten a better understanding of the short lifespan of the beorc, but still…

"Phoenixes live up to a thousand years and then are engulfed by the Eternal Flame to be reborn again. Or at least, those of the Fire element," Fie continued with a slight nod.

This decided it, Tibarn looked at Ulki and Janaff. "I am going to send messengers to Goldoa," was all he said before taking leave of the room.

Janaff looked at the boy. "So, since you're going to be staying with us hawks, how about we er…I mean I show you around?" The look that came from Ulki midsentence caused him to change his wording.

"Someone has to wait for Tibarn's return," Ulki said, closing his eyes. It was easier to listen that way. "You two go."

It wasn't that long after that the two birds left the stone building, Janaff again carrying Fie on his back. Though this time, he didn't transform into his full bird form.

"You know, phoenixes must really age slowly for you to be nearly as old as me and still be unable to fly," Janaff commented curiously. Then again, hawk was not one known to keep his beak shut. Though the youth didn't respond.

"Hey, are you listening? I could be pointing out something important, you know."

"Oh? I'm sorry. Before today, I've never seen the ocean up this close."

"Ah, that's okay. You'll be seeing it a lot around here, since Phoenicis is an island. Even though it's more isolated, it suits us just fine. There are plenty of fish to catch and we're not all that far away from shore to hunt if needed," Janaff rattled on, then pointing to another building. "That's most likely where you will stay."

"Okay, that's nice. …It must be great to be strong like the hawks. Of course, my Papa is much stronger," Fie said proudly. Janaff wasn't so sure if Fie's assessment was true, or if it was merely a nestling's praise of his kin. He hoped that it was the latter.

"So what do you know about the other bird tribes, Fie? Since your kind seems to keep to themselves very well," he inquired further.

"I…umm…don't know that much. I know that there are the powerful Hawks, the cunning Ravens, and the balanced Herons."

"Then I will be sure to teach you everything I know about them while you're here, Fie. Why, by the time you're home, you'll be able to teach your people a thing or two about us. You could almost be an ambassador of your people!" Janaff exclaimed, thinking about what information he would tell the hatchling.

"That sounds like fun, Mister Janaff," answered Fie, the title causing Janaff to cringe a bit. There were a few times during the trip back that he had been called that, but this was enough for him to not ignore it anymore.

"Err…you can just call me Janaff. Or Uncle Janny if you really want a title," he grinned, looking back at the child a moment.

"Okay, Uncle Janny," Fie laughed.

Well, Janaff didn't actually expect him to use that, but what could he do? Saying differently than before would be hypocrisy. Instead, he landed on the ground surrounding the building he had earlier pointed out. "So, let's see if we can't find a room for you. I doubt Tibarn would expect any differently."

As the two made their way inside, Janaff noticed a couple of other bird Laguz, to which he waved to enthusiastically. Getting a wave in response from three of the four, he was satisfied enough to look at Fie. "We have two of the only remaining members of the Heron tribe here visiting, along with a couple of Ravens. So you'll really be able to learn about them as well."

"Oh," was all that Fie said, looking at the fellow birds with interest. It was safe to say that the other birds didn't mind, as they were looking much the same at him. The other birds, of course, were King Naesala, Nealuchi, and the sibling Herons. Janaff was so happy to see most of them (of course, Naesala hadn't quite repented in Janaff's book), that it took a moment to realize that Fie had gone over to them, looking at Reyson and Leanne.

"Greetings! Papa told me a lot about the Herons," he said, looking excited. There wasn't a lot that he had been told about the others, but apparently there was something about the Herons against condoning all fighting, and that they were entrusted with some sort of medallion…he didn't pay all that much attention to those details. The galdars were something though, being able to restore people and nature was something to be admired indeed.

Reyson blinked at this, and raised an eyebrow, looking at Janaff. "Papa?"

Janaff was very thankful for the fact that he wasn't up high in flight, for he would have fallen like a stone. Surely Reyson didn't think Fie meant him…right? After a moment, the hawk indeed could confirm that's just what he thought. "N-not me. This nestling is a guest of King Tibarn's as well. I was just going to find a room for him to stay in."

Reyson did not appear to be impressed by the nervous look that accompanied the stuttering Janaff gave out, and Leanne giggled at the misunderstanding. The high-pitched noised caught the attention of the Raven King.

However, Naesala stayed quiet. Of course, he noticed the strange coloring of Fie's wings, and finding that after a bit he didn't really care about any of this. Why, the only reason he came here was because he wanted to see his heron friends. Well, that wasn't it either. He really only cared to see Leanne. Once he had heard that the Herons were visiting from Gallia, he quickly came up with a reason to visit as well. With Reyson busy talking, the Raven King took hold of Leanne's hand and whispered something into her ear, before leading her away while the others were busy being amused.

It took a little bit for Janaff to notice this, but grinned when he looked at Reyson. "Prince, it seems the Raven King has once again made off with your sister," he said, thankful for a reason to get the attention off of him.

The White Prince quickly whipped around, and a scowl appeared on his face as he confirmed what Janaff said before flying off in search of his sister. Janaff could hear him yelling at an absent Naesala for his treachery, way down the hall.

"I should follow them," Nealuchi apologized before flying after them.

Fie watched them leave before looking over at Janaff. The two then wordlessly entered a room, the one in which would be the little bird's. "I hope you don't mind it. Nealuchi is the one rooming next to you," the hawk said, opening the window.

The room wasn't anywhere near as elaborate as those found in Beorc castles, but it had a nice feeling to it. There was a bed, a dresser, and a wooden perch for those that wanted to tend to themselves in bird form. That brought a thought to Janaff's mind as Fie inspected the room.

"So why are your feathers such vivid colors?"

Fie blinked. "Why are your feathers various tones of brown?"

"Point taken. Though, when we were waiting for King Tibarn to show, you seemed to be doing something to one of the torches. Is that somehow connected to that Eternal Flame you were talking about?"

"Sort of. Fire is an element that allows my people to exist, to die, and be reborn. And so fire responds to us in various ways. It depends on how old and skilled you are, but…I don't really have the age or skill yet," Fie answered calmly, though he seemed rather excited by being in this room.

"I guess I'll leave you here for now and let you get used to the place. I'll come and get you in a few hours, Fie."

With that, the hawk left the room, heading for the entrance. He wondered what happened with the herons and ravens after they disappeared, though he grinned to himself at the thought of Reyson trying to lecture Naesala. That crow would never listen, he hadn't before after all.

The best thing to do at this time would be to return to Tibarn and Ulki, and let their king decide on what to do about this strange circumstance. Imagine, another Laguz tribe! Though…if there was this tribe, how many others were out there that they didn't know about? Did others exist?

Unfortunately for Janaff, he was brought out of his thoughts.

"Oh, there you are, Janaff!" a female voice called out to him.

The hawk froze, his eyes looking for the nearest exit. This wasn't something he really wanted to deal with at the moment. And so he made his escape into the sky, making his way back to Tibarn and Ulki.

Thinking of the two, he bitterly decided that it was Ulki's fault that he was now on the run! Sure, Janaff did have a thing about asking pretty ladies out every then and again. He was a pretty good darn good Laguz so he could hardly blame females of all types for wanting to go out with him. Though that one…Ulki said that she would be a good match for him.

Oh what a joke that was! They went out once, and only once. And never had he been around someone that was so…so…annoying! And as long as he'd be able to, he'd like to keep their meetings to just that one time.

It was with that situation in mind that Janaff flew back into the room with his king, and fellow attendant. Staying next to Ulki, albeit a tinge angry, Janaff turned his full attention to Tibarn. "The nestling is staying in the room next to Nealuchi."

The king nodded. "Hopefully he won't cause Nealuchi any problems then. Now, I sent a messenger to Goldoa to see if they can confirm any of what he has told us so far. I won't take anything on hearsay, and he may very well be just here to cause trouble. Although, I prefer the thought that he isn't."

Tibarn's gaze then turned to that of a command. "The two of you will be responsible for any of his actions while he is here in Phoenicis. If you are able to find anything else about him or his people, I would like to know it as well."

Janaff thought about what he had gotten out of Fie in earlier conversations, but decided that he really didn't have enough information. He could barely sort it all out himself, let alone explain it confidently to another. They would need more time. "Of course."

"At your command," Ulki said, not sure if he enjoyed the idea of 'baby-sitting' the nestling more than what he had already. He wasn't exactly the friendliest hawk to youths, though he wasn't mean either. Still, if their king commanded it, Ulki would obey until told differently.

"They will be your orders until the messenger returns."

Which, that meant it would be a couple of days at least before they got any word. It mainly depended upon if the Dragon tribe had any of the information at all, or somewhere that they knew.

With those last commands, the two hawks left the building to check on their young charge.

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed it. Let's see what the next chapter will bring...


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